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The Department of the Air Force has issued implementation guidance covering two uniform changes: new wear instructions for Chaplain Corps insignia on operational uniforms and the introduction of an Air Force maternity wrap dress. The guidance was released June 15.
Under a Department of War announcement first made in March 2026, chaplains will replace officer rank with the chaplain insignia on the chest of the Operational Camouflage Pattern uniform, as well as on patrol and tactical caps and outerwear. The service dress uniform for chaplains is unchanged.
Although rank will not appear on chaplains’ OCPs, customs and courtesies remain in effect in accordance with DAF Instruction 90-1201. When rank is not immediately visible, officers are expected to exchange salutes and a greeting. Enlisted personnel and noncommissioned officers should use the chaplain insignia as the cue to render a salute. Day-to-day familiarity within units will continue to guide who initiates a salute when members know a chaplain’s rank, and when exact rank must be established for protocol or administrative purposes, it will be confirmed verbally. Chaplains may be addressed by rank or by the title “chaplain.”
The guidance also authorizes the Air Force maternity wrap dress to be worn as the equivalent of mess dress, semi-formal, and Class A uniforms for pregnant Airmen, with a mandatory wear date of July 2030. Name tags are not permitted with the mess dress or semi-formal configurations, while a metal engraved name tag is required for the Class A configuration.
The wrap dress is already available at some stateside Army & Air Force Exchange Service stores, with all U.S. locations expected to carry it by the end of the month. Overseas stores should receive stock in the next few months, and online availability through AAFES’s website is planned.
Space Force Guardians are not authorized to wear the Air Force maternity wrap dress and will continue to use the Air Force jumper per SPFI 36-2903. A new Space Force maternity uniform is in prototype testing, with availability targeted for 2027.
CAC-enabled Airmen and Guardians can find additional details on MyFSS under Chaplain OCP Uniform Reform and Air Force Maternity Wrap Dress Guidance.
